Start From Scratch
by KDSanders
Summary: Garcia receives some unexpected help with a New Year's Resolution. Written for The New Year's Resolution Challenge at the Chit Chat On Author's Corner forum.  One Shot/Complete


**Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or any of its characters. **

**Author's Note: This was written for The New Year's Resolution Challenge at the Chit Chat On Author's Corner forum. Thank you to a good friend for helping out with editing.**

**Starting From Scratch**

She threw her latest failure the garbage bin. She hated being this wasteful but she wouldn't unload these disgusting rocks on anyone. In order to eat something you had to be able to chew it.

She plopped down in a chair at the table and looked at the cookbook for what seemed like the hundredth time. What had gone wrong this time? Why couldn't she do this?

Penelope Garcia could do a lot of things. She could hack into the most secure computer systems in the world. She could act. She could sew. She could even, on occasion, bring a smile to the sourest of faces. Just ask Aaron Hotchner. And usually, she could bake. If baking meant opening a box, adding the last few wet ingredients and popping it in the oven. This had always been Garcia's version of baking, but this New Year's Eve, as 2011 came to a close, the team decided to trade resolutions.

They'd been on a flight back from some small town in New Mexico and in a particularly good mood since they'd found the victim alive and well. The resolutions were as different as the people making them: train for a marathon, reconnect with family, learn a new language, or take a vacation. Nothing life altering. Garcia's had been to learn to bake from scratch. No box, no mix. Just a recipe and counter full of ingredients.

How hard could it be, she'd thought. But here it was January 20th and she could smell her latest disaster burning in the garbage. Frustrated, she decided to give it one more try before calling it a night.

Realizing she was out of flour, she grabbed her cookbook and coat and walked to the corner market down the street.

She stood in the spice aisle pondering the difference between self-rising and all-purpose when someone said, "Garcia?"

Her cookbook crashed to the floor as she turned to see a face from her past.

"Sorry," he said picking up the book, "I didn't mean to scare you. I wasn't sure it was you, red hair's new."

"Agent Gideon," she stammered. "I haven't….yeah….it's new. Well, new to you. How are you?"

"Good," he said, " Good. And it's Jason. I haven't been an agent for years."

"Jason," she repeated. It was difficult to say. "What are you doing here? I mean obviously you're here shopping, but I mean why are you back?"

"New Year's Resolution I guess you could say. I'm trying to make amends."

"Amends, to who?"

"To the people I've wronged."

She felt sorry for him. He had hurt a lot of people when he left those years ago without so much as a word, but the team had come to the conclusion that Gideon had been hurting more than any of them could have imagined at the time.

"How have you been," he asked. "What are you up to?"

"Good," she said awkwardly. "Kevin and I are still together. Well, I guess we weren't back then. I have a boyfriend. He's with the Bureau, too. I have a godson, JJ's little boy. I've joined a theatre group and started a victims support group because of the shooting. Oh," she said, "I guess you wouldn't know about that either. I was shot shortly after you left. I'm fine now. The team got the guy."

Jason smiled at the flood of information. "Wow," he said, "you've been busy. The team, too. JJ has a son? How are the others?"

"Good. Reid's learning to play piano. Guess he ran out of degrees to get. Morgan's got a steady girlfriend for the first time since I met him. Emily is back, that's kind a complicated story, but she's better than ever. Rossi is writing another book. And Hotch is doing a lot better since…"

"Haley."

Garcia nodded.

"I didn't hear until after the funeral. It didn't seem right to just send flowers."

"They're doing better," she continued. "He and Jack."

They made small talk for a while and then he asked the purpose of the cookbook.

"It's my New Year's Resolution. I'm trying to bake from scratch, but so far it's a disaster. It all comes out rock hard and burnt to a crisp."

He looked into her basket, and then opened the book.

"Which one are you making?"

"The cowboy cookies," she said flipping to the page. "The ones with oatmeal and chocolate chips. I've done the same one every time and can't figure out what I'm doing wrong."

"Here's your problem," Jason said. "All purpose flour but no baking soda. You either need to get self-rising or add some baking soda. That makes them fluffy."

"But it just says flour," Garcia groaned. "How are you supposed to know what kind?"

"Rule of thumb, if you need baking soda get all-purpose, if not get self-rising."

"Thanks," she said, smiling, "I'll remember that. Well, I guess I should get home; the oven is still on pre-heat. It was good seeing you."

"You, too," he said. "And Penelope, if you could just keep this between us. I'm still trying to build up my courage."

"My lips are sealed."

Her cookies turned out fluffy and perfect. Kevin ate half a dozen before bed and packed a Ziploc bag full into his lunch for the next day. As the team munched on them, she badly wanted to tell them about seeing Gideon, but true to her word, she kept silent.

Over the next few weeks, Garcia and Jason continued to run into each other at the market. She brought him cookies to show off her success and he gave her more tips. February came and went and the cookies kept getting better. She never asked why he hadn't made himself known to the others yet. She assumed he would do it when he was ready. February came and went and the cookies kept getting better.

As mid March approached Garcia was unable to find Gideon at the store. Multiple trips in a week and she missed him every time. One night as she paced back and forth on the spice aisle, a clerk approached her.

"Are you Miss Garcia?" She nodded. "A man left this for you."

He handed her an envelope.

"Dear Penelope,  
>I'm so glad that I was able to reconnect with you. I never got to know you as well as I should have when we worked together. You are an incredible person. I am sorry that I couldn't tell you this in person, but it was time for me to go. I hope to see you again some day. Keep baking. Hope this helps.<br>Jason"

Behind the note was an old handwritten recipe card. The writing wasn't his, except a small note beside the flour measurement. "Self-rising" he'd added.

The next morning Garcia sat a box of caramel spice cookies on the layout table. The team grabbed them hungrily.

Reid looked up after a bite.

"Where did you get these cookies?"

"I made them," she insisted.

"Where did you get the recipe?"

She hesitated.

"You saw him too?

"Him," JJ asked.

"Gideon," this is his mother's old recipe. "You saw him too?"

Garcia nodded.

"Wait," Morgan said. "You guys saw him, too?"

The whole team seemed to be in agreement and shock.

Garcia smiled. "I guess he made his amends."


End file.
